NEW DELHI, Feb 26: An Indian Forest Service official of Tripura cadre has been suspended for naming a lion and lioness “Akbar” and “Sita” respectively. The suspension order was issued by the Tripura government following a row after a case was filed by the Vishwa Hindu Parishad, officials said.
The lion and lioness were sent to Bengal Safari Park in Siliguri from Tripura’s Sepahijala Zoological Park on February 12. The VHP’s northern West Bengal unit filed a petition before the Jalpaiguri circuit bench of the Calcutta High Court, praying that the names be changed as it has hurt the religious sentiments of the Hindus.
Agrawal, a 1994-batch officer, who was posted as the Principal Chief Conservator of Forest Wildlife & Ecotourism), was suspended on February 22 in connection with the incident. The court had asked the West Bengal Zoo Authority to consider renaming the lioness and lion, and wondered why create a controversy by giving such names.
Taking into consideration the entire gamut of the row, the BJP government in Tripura had sought an explanation from Agrawal, who was earlier the chief wildlife warden. Agrawal denied naming the lion and lioness, but later, it was found that the animals were named before they were sent to West Bengal as per the dispatch register, another official said.
“Since Agrawal was the chief wildlife warden of Tripura during the relocation process of the animals, he was placed under suspension,” the official said.
(Manas Dasgupta)
